Chief's Staff, Austral Islandslength 81 1/2in (207cm)ProvenanceFrench Private CollectionBonhams, San Francisco, 5 May, 2015, Lot 93Alex Philips Oceanic Art, Melbourne, AustraliaAustralian Private CollectionAn early and finely carved example with a circular, hollowed out top with an open work frieze of eight stylized heads with elaborate topknots below a limited area of incising; a raised collar about one foot from the base.Cf. Mack, Charles W., Polynesian Art at Auction 1965-1980, 1982, fig. for a similar (or possibly the same) example.